Floating bed cultivation of vegetables are becoming increasingly popular in the low-lying southern districts of Bangladesh, such as Bagerhat. Typically introduced in flood-prone areas, this revival of an age-old technique allows farmers to grow vegetables in water – even as the water level increases.

Usually, bamboo is laid on a dense layer of water hyacinth. The first layer acts as the base of the floating bed and maintains the stability, buoyancy and thickness of the bed. Above layers are used as compost. After 8-10 days, farmers sow and transplant the seeds/seedlings already germinated.

Two or three crop rotation cycles on floating gardens during one monsoon season are common. In the following winter, the floating beds are decomposed and the residue is used to enrich the soil for winter vegetable cultivation. [FAO]